The Jewish Community
Center in St. Paul, opened in 1930 first under the name of the Jewish
Educational Center, began as a space for religious education and community
activity programs, creating a place the St. Paul Jewish community to come
together for Jewish culture, child care, fitness, recreation and
socialization.

Researchers may quote from the collection under the fair use provision
of the copyright law (Title 17, U.S. Code). Requests to publish should be
arranged with the Upper Midwest Jewish Archives; please contact the archives
for more detailed copyright information.

Arrangement

The collection is divided into series:

Series 1: Administrative and Correspondence

Series 2: Board Meeting and Committee Meeting Minutes

Series 3: Programs and Activities

Series 4: Publications and Publicity

Series 5: Scrapbooks

Series 6: Photographs

Historical Note

Before the present-day Jewish Community Center of St. Paul was created
in 1948, there were other community organizations that paved the way to their
success. The Neighborhood House, an organization to help poor immigrants on the
West Side was founded in 1900 under the auspices of the Hebrew Ladies
Benevolent Society and the Rabbis of Mt Zion. The Settlement House offered
classes in English, homemaking, and social and recreational activities. The
Lowertown Community Center (Central Community House) opened in 1921 with the
mission of preventing juvenile delinquency. Later in the 1920s both Houses
became more nonsectarian and Lowertown had become a Community Chest
beneficiary. Other organizations such as B'nai B'rith, the YMHA and YWHA, and
social clubs such as Aleph Beth sponsored activities at the houses with Jewish
content. All of these groups contributed to the emergence of the JCC in St
Paul. In 1930 the first iteration of the St. Paul Jewish Community Center (JCC)
was opened as the Jewish Educational Center (JEC). The building, which housed
both a Hebrew school and recreational facilities, quickly ran into financial
difficulties due to the Depression. The JEC association turned to the Community
Chest for assistance and, following their suggestions, was reorganized in 1934
into three parts: one part dedicated to owning and operating the building, one
part dedicated to operating and maintaining the Hebrew School (the JEC), and
one part dedicated to taking charge of the community activity programs. The
part dedicated to community activity programs was the Jewish Center Activities
Association (JCAA) which became eligible for Community Chest support; from this
the present-day Jewish Community Center was created in 1948. The JCAA developed
musical, theatre and scouting groups, and became the center of the St Paul
Jewish community, although secondarily its programs were open to the wider
community. In 1956 the original building on Holly and Grotto was sold and the
programs were operated from temporary facilities in the Highland Park area.
During 1958 the Jack Butwin Day Camp was established in the Rosemount area to
meet the needs of middle-class families. Ground was broken for the present
Jewish Community Center location in 1963 where the JCC continues to serve the
mission of providing individuals, families and communities a place to come
together for Jewish culture, child care, fitness, recreation and socialization
in an inclusive and welcoming environment.

Collection Scope and Content Note

Records include administrative materials such as correspondence, board
and committee meeting minutes, and program planning correspondence. Various
publications, such as activity program schedule pamphlets, newsletters, and
writing workshop booklets are also included. Photographs comprise their own
series of materials, organized by subject and many are undated. Scrapbooks are
oversized and in varied states of physical condition, most housing newsprint
clippings.

Subject Terms

Index Terms

This collection is indexed under the following headings in the catalog
of the University of Minnesota Libraries. Researchers desiring materials about
related topics, persons or places should search the catalog using these
headings.